THE mum of a Swindon woman killed by Christopher Halliwell is desperately trying to find the rest of her daughter’s remains.

Karen Edwards claims mistakes in Wiltshire Police’s handling of her daughter’s case left some forensic evidence unaccounted for and believes her killer may have kept or moved the skull, hands and feet.

Halliwell was found guilty in 2016 of murdering Becky, having five years earlier led police to the Gloucestershire field where he had buried her, and had been previously convicted in 2012 of killing Sian O’Callaghan.

He is serving two life sentences for the deaths of Becky in 2003 and Sian in 2011.

The force released Becky’s remains in 2017. Karen then asked funeral director Hillier’s over the phone what size urn she would require to store them, and gave permission for the sealed box to be opened.

Karen said: “What I heard was shocking and at that point I felt sick but I knew I had to check for myself because I have lost all faith in Wiltshire Police.”

Amongst the contents were containers with bone fragments and bench debris, small empty bags and a clear tube which contained nothing but blue paper.

Karen says the remains returned did not match the list of the box’s contents.

This troubling omission, along with a colour-coded diagram of what police found which does not match a photo of what was in the makeshift grave – a lower leg bone is apparently missing – gave Karen cause for concern and she wants to know how these discrepancies happened and where the rest of her daughter is.

Karen had re-buried some of Becky’s remains in 2011 after she had been found in the Eastleach field where Halliwell had buried her in 2003.

Karen had the headstone removed to bury Becky and Charlie in the same plot and would like to restore it once the rest of Becky’s remains have been reunited.

Karen added: “Becky should be in one grave. There’s bits of her all over the place and we don’t know where she is, it’s disgusting and utterly disgraceful behaviour.

“This has been a nightmare, it’s one thing after another. My strength and determination has kept me going along with my fantastic family and support network of friends and the public, but I would hate the thought of someone else having to put up with this shocking treatment.

“I understand there are other things going on and the police are struggling with the resources they have but my daughter needs to be put to rest, I need to finalise this and get closure.

“I have a lot of respect for the police, many of my friends are in the police, but it’s the hierarchy that’s given me grief.

“The police assigned someone to look into this back in 2018 after I complained but they didn’t visit the funeral directors until April this year. I think they went around all the laboratories first before going to check what they were actually looking for, putting the cart before the horse.”

Aside from her concerns about the police, Karen wonders what happened to the head, hands and feet of the 20-year-old which have never been recovered. It is thought that the body was originally intact.

Her concerned mother recalls specialists giving evidence during the killer’s trial and wondering whether the removal of Becky’s head and extremities had been caused by human, animal or mechanical action before coming to the conclusion that the removal was too selective to be from animal behaviour and the body would have been damaged if machinery had been to blame.

Karen added: “This leaves only one option – Halliwell. Has he kept these parts as trophies? We know he went back to the site several times.”

A Wiltshire Police spokesman said: “We are aware of the concerns raised by Karen Edwards in relation to the remains of her daughter Becky Godden-Edwards. We are working in conjunction with the IOPC to investigate these concerns and make sure Ms Edwards is kept up to date."

MIKE REES AND PCC ELECTION

Her problems with the way Wiltshire’s top police officers have handled the investigation into her daughter’s murder and its aftermath – but there is one person who she believes can start to turn things around.

Mike Rees is running as an independent candidate in tomorrow’s re-run of the election to be the county’s next police and crime commissioner.

If he receives enough votes to become the successor to Angus Macpherson, Mr Rees will invite former detective superintendent Steve Fulcher to take on the role of deputy PCC.

Both were heavily involved in the Halliwell investigation but Karen was unaware of Mr Rees’ role until she met him a few months ago.

She added: “I’m a good judge of character and my first impression was he’s a listener, he has integrity and he gets things done.

“He’s a very warm, caring and compassionate man with a lot of first-hand experience and knowledge of how the police works.

“If it had not been for Covid, I would have given him a big hug because when we talked about the case, I learned he was one of the team who found Becky’s remains and he was the one who marked her grave, which helped bring her home. For that, I will be forever grateful.

“I would like to think that if anyone went to him with a complaint, he would provide the same compassion he gave to Becky, myself and my family.”

Mr Fulcher heard Halliwell confess to Becky’s murder during the Sian O’Callahan investigation but because the senior detective had not properly cautioned the killer before hearing this shocking admission, a judge later ruled that evidence as inadmissible.

This led to the original murder charge against Halliwell in 2012 for Becky’s death to be withdrawn and Mr Fulcher’s career in the police force coming to an end.

Karen added: “Steve has a good record of excellence and is so admired despite the way he was treated by Wiltshire Police. If he accepts the invitation to be deputy, it would be a great thing for the county.

"Mike Rees has always supported Steve around making a moral choice in an extraordinary situation."

His four main priorities if elected as the new PCC for Swindon and Wiltshire would be a stronger police presence, wise and responsible spending, supporting communities, and safer streets.

He remembers the moment he met Karen and the small gesture which provided a lot of solace to the grieving mum during a traumatic time.

Mr Rees added: “Until this year I’d not met Karen, which may sound strange. Even though I was directly involved in the recovery of Becky, I managed the scene and with my colleagues made a little cross, laid some flowers and observed a minute’s silence more than ten years ago. It was our quiet tribute.

“When I met Karen face to face we were able to talk openly about that and she asked me about the flowers and it was emotional for us both.

"Even now, a decade on I never underestimate the ongoing impact such a loss has on a family, parents and all loved ones.

“I was, and am, so humbled that Karen has supported me and my campaign team. As an independent every little effort made by anyone makes such a difference.

"Regardless of the outcome of this election, Karen and I will be staying in touch. I count her as a friend."